


Spa Days

by HyperKid



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Bath Time, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, M/M, Multi, Nudity, Other, adventures in spa building, everything is better naked and boiling, heart to heart, wet and naked cuddle puddle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2019-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:48:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21557395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HyperKid/pseuds/HyperKid
Summary: Caduceus has an idea what to do with their first week in the Xhorhouse, but he’ll need Jester’s help. Everyone else is more than happy to help them break it in.
Relationships: Beau/Yasha/Jester/Caleb/Fjord/Caduceus, Nott/Yeza, Polynein
Comments: 12
Kudos: 144





	Spa Days

**Author's Note:**

> HK: Sooooo. Started this the week after they got the house.  
Mollymauk: Podcast time?  
HK: Podcast time. And! I had literally no idea where else it was gonna go. But now we’re here!  
Mollymauk: I do like a good soft heart to heart.  
HK: And here I thought the part you’d like would be the bath.  
Mollymauk: Oh, that’s good too. But I’m a sucker for some loving.  
HK: I gotta do a cuddle puddle with you again soon. It’s Missing Molly Hours.  
Mollymauk: *nose tweak* With you, darlin, it’s Missing Molly Years. 
> 
> WARNINGS!! Wet and naked people and hints of emotional vulnerability? 
> 
> Disclaimers: I own nothing and no one, it’s a real travesty. Well, except my dear sub.

It wasn’t every day that Caduceus Clay bubbled with excitement. That more than anything else caught Jester’s attention as she came out of Yasha’s room, paint flecked across her skin and hair. The firbolg was more amped up than she’d ever seen him, rocking back and forth on his toes. 

“I’ve had an idea,” he blurted out before she could ask, eyes bright as he looked down at her. A smile curled across Jester’s face, her mood immediately rising to match his. 

“Yeah? Is it cool?” she asked eagerly, clapping her hands together. Excitement was always infectious to Jester but Caduceus was definitely radiating. He nodded happily, long pink hair swinging around his face. 

“We’re going to build a spa in my tower.” 

Jester gasped, clapping her hands together even faster and bouncing up on her toes as the thrill of the idea shot through her. It put her at about the level of his stomach. 

“Caduceus!! That’s going to be so cool!” 

The other cleric beamed down at her, decidedly proud of himself. 

“That’s what I thought too,” he agreed with a nod, reaching out one large hand. “Shall we?” 

Jester grabbed it in both hands, squeezing eagerly and tugging him off towards the tower. 

“How are we going to do it! We can do Create Water and fill it up, but how do we make it hot? And find somewhere to put it? Are we gonna buy a reeeeeeeally big bath tub?” She gasped in delight at the thought, skipping backwards across the floor. “Caduceus, this is such a great idea!” 

The firbolg nodded happily and allowed himself to be towed along, his mind abuzz with ideas. 

“I thought we might use Stone Shaping to create a hollow or a raised bath for us to fill, and Mr Caleb might be able to help us with some fire spells to heat the water.” 

Jester gasped again, her voice rising to an excited squeak as she twirled around to push the door open. 

“That’s genius Caduceus! We can make it super pretty and with steps and everything and little bits for us to put drinks and things!” 

“I don’t know that drinking in the spa is a good idea,” Caduceus mused slowly, his own smile fixed firmly in place by her exhilaration, “but some steps and place holders would be a good idea.” 

“Could we put crystals in them?” Jester asked eagerly, releasing his hand and darting into the tower room to spin her way across the floor. “Oh, it’d be so pretty in here with some nice crystals and floating lights! We can come in and relax at the end of every day and have a soak and some fun!” 

“And you can wash your hair,” Caduceus added with a fond smile. Jester stilled at once, her hands flying to the oiled twist on top of her head. 

“Is it really gross?” She asked in a small voice, uncertainty flushing the eagerness from her. It made the firbolg frown as regret crept in. She was so bright and bouncy it was always a surprise to see her shaken. 

“It’s not bad. But I think you might be supposed to wash it in between uses, it’s getting a little thick.” He crossed the room towards her and held out his hand. “Besides, I’ve missed our little hair parties,” he told her in a low voice, and was pleased to see a smile spread back across her face. 

“We could wash each others’ hair maybe, before we do the spa for the first time?” Jester offered, glancing around the small room in rising excitement. “I bet Beau would like to come along too, and Yasha! We could all do our hair!” 

“That would be great,” Caduceus agreed with a soft smile, looking around the room. “Shall we get started?” 

Jester nodded with a fresh determination, giving his hand a squeeze and them dropping it to rest both hands on her hips, examining the space. 

“Okay! Where do we want this pool?” 

** 

The grinding of stone on stone, accompanied by giggles and the occasional loud exclamation, filled the house and a fair portion of the street for several hours. Despite the labour being more magical than physical, both clerics were sweaty, tired, and glowing with pride when they finally emerged. 

Beau eyed the pair of them with some understandable trepidation, shifting to put a chair between them. 

“Were you guys tunnelling for gold or something?” She asked warily, making a face at the stone dust covering them. Jester gasped excitedly and spun back to Caduceus. 

“Do you think there’s gold down there!” 

“I don’t think we’re digging up the spa to look,” Caduceus replied firmly, folding his arms. For a moment Jester pouted, but nothing could keep the dazzling smile from her face for long. She spun back to Beau, beaming. 

“Do you know where Caleb is? We need him to help heat all of the water.” 

Beau’s eyebrows rose even further, surprise and mild trepidation building with confusion. 

“The... water? Spa? What the fuck have you guys been doing down there all day?” 

The smile Caduceus gave her was all placid calm. 

“There was some space at the bottom of my tower, and we finished the daylight bottles, so we thought it might be nice to convert the ground floor into a spa for everyone.” 

Jester nodded excitedly, bouncing across the room to sieze Beau’s hands and spin her into her arms. 

“We made a really nice big pool, and a space under it for Caleb to cast his firebolt in and heat it up, and you can see the roots of Caduceus’ tree coming in through the ceiling, and it all looks really cool!” 

Unable to help herself, Beau began to smile as well, letting Jester spin her. 

“That does sound pretty cool,” she admitted, glancing between the clerics, “and it’s for all of us to use?” 

“Just as soon as we can find Mr Caleb,” Caduceus agreed with his soft smile. 

“It’s a little chilly right now,” Jester stage whispered, finally spinning to a stop, “I stuck my tail in and I thought it was okay but then Caduceus put his hand in and he squeaked!” 

Beau stifled a grin and shook her head. 

“I swear you’re part ice cube. Think I saw him with Essek earlier today?” 

“We’ll check the library,” Caduceus declared with a pleased nod, moving across the room. Jester skipped after him, waving to Beau. 

“If you find some towels and stuff you can come join us to christen it!” 

A slightly strained expression passed slowly over Beau’s face. 

“I... don’t think that means what you think it means?” 

But both clerics were already gone, off to hunt down their wizard. Shrugging to herself, the monk wandered off in search of towels. It was only about a 50% chance that Jester had used the term wrong anyway. 

*** 

For once, it wasn’t actually a chore to drag Caleb from the library. The clerics caught him just at the end of a particularly tiring dunamancy lesson with Essek and he was only slightly reluctant to give himself over. The promise of hot water and maybe a massage smoothed the journey and soon the wizard was examining the flame chamber under the spa somewhat sceptically. 

“You do know it will take quite a while for one little Fire Bolt to hear this much water, right?” 

“How long for a Fireball?” Jester asked innocently with her best sweet smile. The wizard squinted at her too, with even more scepticism. 

“I am never sure whether or not you’re joking...” 

“We were thinking you could use several Fire Bolts to get the fire going, and then keep the wood burning to keep it hot,” Caduceus cut in, beaming at the pair of them. The closer his idea came to fruition the more excited he became. Occasionally he’d glance up at the roots winding their way through the roof of the tower and his smile would spread. 

Caleb bent down to squint into the fire chamber again, then sighed. 

“It has to be worth a try. I don’t suppose either of you could use your sacred flames to be of any help?” 

“That’s kinda more a light thing than a fire thing,” Jester explained with a shrug, dropping her caplet on the ground beside her. Caleb made a slightly dismissive noise and nodded, stepping back. 

“You have enough wood to heat the whole thing?” 

There was a long, ominous silence from behind him. 

Caleb sighed. 

“Go and get some more wood and I’ll get started.” 

*** 

Since they were already quite firmly the Weird House on the block, the sight of Yasha and Jester carrying twice their bodyweight in firewood didn’t get too much attention. No one was quite sure how much it would take to heat the spa but it was generally agreed that more would be better than less. 

Even if Jester did think exasperating Caleb further would be hilarious. 

It didn’t take long for the rest of the Nein to work out what was going on either, and by the time the water was heated to bathing temperature, there was a small crowd of naked adventurers buzzing to get in. 

Jester, Caduceus, Yasha, and Fjord had taken over the full bathroom while Beau helped Caleb feed the flames, and all four were scrubbed and still damp when Caleb finally stepped back, nodding. 

“Alright. That should keep slowly heating a little more, and we won’t need to do much with it.” 

Beau, already sprawled in the pool and grinning at her friends, raised a hand. 

“It feels really fuckin’ good you guys.” 

Jester bounced excitedly, clasping her hands together. 

“Ooooh, it looks so pretty! I can’t wait!” 

Fjord caught her by the elbow before she could jump in and tugged her back, chuckling softly. 

“Hey now, don’t go spillin’ all the water you guys worked so hard to make.” 

Beside them, Caduceus stepped carefully up and into the pool, making a soft, contented sigh as he settled into place. There were a series of raised and lowered seats around the edges, seven specially tailored to take the height of the Nein into consideration. 

Beau was actually in Caleb’s, leaving the water just below her collarbone, but the humans were close enough no one was going to worry. 

Caduceus’ was actually just a gap all the way down to the floor of the pool and he disappeared all the way to his chin. 

“That’s nice,” he declared happily, leaning back against the wall. Pink hair floated in a stringy cloud around him, spreading as the water flowed through it. 

Seeing no reason to hold back, Caleb stripped the rest of his clothes off and sunk in, not waiting for the rest. He’d worked hard enough to get the damn thing ready, he wasn’t worried about manners. 

Squealing in excitement, Jester slipped Fjord’s grip and rushed to the edge, up the steps.... and delicately dipped her toes in before stepping down with barely a ripple. 

“Oooooh, that feels lovely,” she exclaimed, turning on the steps down to hold out a hand to Fjord, “are you coming?” 

The half orc shook his head, grinning, and stepped up to follow her, taking her hand to let her guide him up and down the various steps. She was bubbling with excitement as she danced around the pool, the water already past her waist as she stood. 

“We have a seat for yoooou over there, next to where Caduceus is sitting! And one for Yasha next to you there, cuz you guys are the same height pretty much and that way you can have more space to spread out if you’re not both there! And Caaaaay-leb, your seat is over here next to Beau, it’s a little lower than hers but pretty much the same as Fjord and Yasha! And my seat is here next to yooooou, and then there’s another one higher next to meee in case Nott and Yeza want to come in!” 

Eyes turned towards the door, where Nott was half hidden behind the frame. Yeza was standing beside her in his underwear, a little uncertain what the etiquette was with his wife’s adventuring party, and not willing to leave her behind and go in without her. 

“Veth?” He asked softly, taking her hands in his to coax her out from behind the wall. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to?” 

The goblin worried her lower lip, trailing back but not willing to pull her hands from his. 

“I know you want to,” she eventually sighed, her gaze darting rapidly across his face, unwilling to fix on one specific point. Yezza smiled softly, cupping her cheeks gently and pressing his forehead to hers. 

“I can always come by later. It’s a little intimidating with all these guys anyway,” he added sheepishly, glancing around to the spa. Most of them were politely pretending not to listen. 

Jester had her chin resting on her fingers where they curled over the edge of the tub to watch, her tail swaying slowly through the air behind her.

“You could come and sit on the side?” She called cheerfully, not bothering to pretend anything whatsoever. A nod to the side indicated a curved dip in the wall, next to the highest seat. “We made you a special spot out of the water.” 

Cautiously, not quite trusting that none of the Nein would splash her - or specifically, Fjord - Nott approached the edge and ran her fingers over the smoothed portion. 

“It’s not very soft...” she remarked somewhat reluctantly. Jester shrugged, patting her hand and scooting over. 

“You could go get a cushion if you want to? As long as we’re careful it shouldn’t get too wet.” 

“We are doing a stupid amount of remodelling,” Beau remarked idly, her head tilted back to stare at the roots coming through the ceiling. 

Caduceus glanced around, mildly confused. 

“They told us they were giving us the house. Doesn’t that mean we can make it comfortable?” 

“Yeah,” Jester cut in before the more world weary could comment, spreading her arms expansively, “there wasn’t even a pool here before! Or a garden! Really all we’re doing is making it better.” 

“I like my room,” Yasha admitted softly with a tender smile towards the blue tiefling. She raised a hand to trace idly across the back of her neck and Jester trilled happily, spilling back into her arms. 

Nott darted away from the edge of the pool, making a face. 

“So much for not getting anything wet,” she groused, scowling down at the drips along the floor and then sighing. 

Concerned, Yeza stepped up and slipped an arm around her shoulders. 

“We can go somewhere else and come back when it’s a little quieter? Just you and me?” 

Nott let herself lean back against him just a little, her fingers rising hesitantly to curl through his. It was... getting easier, letting herself touch him. Believing that he wasn’t going to recoil away. 

That she wasn’t going to accidentally hurt him. 

“That might be okay,” she admitted reluctantly, shooting a brief glance at Caleb. The wizard was submerged to the nose again, eyes closed as he basked in the pool. 

One of Fjord’s hands was playing with his hair. Narrowing her eyes briefly, Nott soon determined that she could in fact see the warlock’s other hand, and that it wasn’t really going to be her problem anyway. She nodded again a little more firmly. 

“We’ll come back later. Sorry everyone,” she added more loudly, raising an arm in an expansive wave and heading for the door. 

Beau and Jester made disappointed noises, but neither made any move to try and object. Caduceus and Yasha didn’t look surprised, both giving the same small nod in return in a way that almost made Nott break into giggles. 

Fjord opened his mouth, probably to comment, and was silenced by Caleb’s fist briefly surfacing to punch straight up into his armpit. 

A satisfied grin on her face, Nott snuggled up to her husband’s side and began leading the way from the room. 

“We can go and get something nice to eat. I bet you haven’t seen much of the market?” 

As the door closed behind them, Jester leaned her elbows on the wall, her head cocked to the side as she watched them go. 

“Do you think she wants to show him off?” She asked, her tail flicking droplets of water as it moved lazily behind her. She sounded soft, pensive, like something a little deeper was weighing on her mind. 

Beau caught a drop of water to the eye, then caught Jester’s tail to still it. When the tiefling glanced back she raised the spade tip to her lips and shrugged. 

“Kinda, yeah. It’s kinda cute. I also don’t think he likes goin’ out in public though.” 

“I sort of thought that might be why she was doing it,” Jester admitted with a sigh, leaving her tail in the human woman’s grasp. “Romance looks hard.” 

“And seriously overrated,” Beau agreed with a dramatic groan. 

A small furrow appeared between Yasha’s brows. 

“I thought you liked what we have?” 

Just the question pulled Beau up so fast that she slipped off her seat and disappeared under the water with a turbulent splash. Once she had been rescued, coughed up water, and caught her breath, she turned a startled stare on the barbarian. 

“I mean... yeah! I do! I love it! But it’s not like gooshy flowers and love letters and romance. It’s just... being there for each other.” 

Jester’s brow furrowed in confusion and she turned to sit cross legged on the halfling height seat, her arms braced on the edge. 

“But we give Yasha flowers all the time?” 

“Because she likes flowers,” the monk pointed out stubbornly, her chin rising, “not because some stupid rules say we have to.” 

“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Fjord added from the other side of the pool, eyes closing as he relaxed. “Beau just ain’t the romantic sort. Doesn’t mean she don’t care.” 

“Well I know that,” Jester huffed, rolling her eyes and settling in against Beau’s side. The monk draped an arm around her, grinning. 

“Just means you don’t gotta waste time courting me, either. We can just have a good time and not worry about any of that junk.” 

“I think I might like to try a little of it, though,” Jester mused, her gaze travelling “nonchalantly” around the room to land pointedly on Fjord. “Not all the time. Just a bit to see if I like it.” 

The half orc cracked open an eye warily and caught her gaze. His cheeks flushed russet and he cleared his throat, shifting about in the water. 

“I... I mean...” 

Somewhat unexpectedly, it was Yasha who came to his rescue. 

“I think you are very good at romance, Jester,” the barbarian woman announced in her low, soft voice, draping an arm around both Jester and Beau’s shoulders to draw them in. “I would be happy to practice with you.” 

Beau pulled a face torn between discomfort and absolute smittenness sandwiched between them. 

“‘M not sayin’ I wouldn’t if you really want to,” she mumbled, glowering into the water, “just that it’s not my thing. I’m not gonna be any good at it.” 

“Perhaps that is why you need the practice?” Caleb asked innocently, shifting to the side just enough to be out of Beau’s reach. She flailed after him anyway but couldn’t give proper chase with a giggling Jester pressed against her side. 

The monk huffed and splashed at him instead, which Caleb accepted with a smile. 

“Will yoooooou give us tips, Cay-leb?” Jester giggled, batting her lashes at him as Beau subsided back to cuddles. 

Caleb’s expression froze for a moment and he cleared his throat. 

“I... uh... I am afraid most of my knowledge of romance comes from books rather than the practical.” 

There was a moment of silence, then Fjord gave him a gentle nudge. 

“Puts you a little higher than the rest of us, if it’s only most,” he pointed out with a smile that was half gentle, half teasing. Caleb’s cheeks flushed as the room filled with loud declamations. 

“Whaaaaaat?” 

“Oh come on Fjord, you’re the smoothest operator we got!” 

“You must have done some romancing?” 

“You know what they say about sailors.” 

Cheeks flushing faintly, Fjord turned his gaze to the ceiling. 

“Alright, I might have had... some little experience in wooing folks, in my time at sea.” 

The air rang with triumphant cackles and Jester splashed both fists into the pool, laughing delightedly. 

“I knew it! You will have to teach allllllll of us your ways!” She declared brightly as water dripped from the walls. 

“What about Yasha?” Fjord shot back, nodding towards the barbarian. “She’s gotta have some practice.” 

Pale cheeks flushed, by far the most dramatic transformation in the group, as Yasha ducked her head. 

“I may have a little,” she admitted quietly, not meeting anyones’ eyes, “but I don’t know how much it would translate.” 

The others exchanged glances awkwardly, shifting. Not sure where the conversation should go from there. As usual, Jester took over when silence prevailed and patted her cheerfully on the arm. 

“That’s okay, none of us know enough about anything to say you’d be wrong! So I think you’ve gotta be right about it all on principle.” 

“Unless it involves corpses of enemies,” Fjord added just a little too quickly, raising both hands as Beau shot him a sharp look. “What?” 

“We’ve done a lot of weird shit to the corpses of enemies,” Caleb mused, leaning back against the wall, “and Yasha is usually involved in carrying their heads.” 

“When I’m around,” the barbarian agreed, a shy smile breaking across her lips. Jester giggled and leaned across Beau to kiss her cheek. 

“Aww, does that mean I’m courting you when I pick up the bits of stuff?” 

Between them, Beau groaned and sank back against the wall. 

“Alright, I know I said I don’t know shit about romance but that does not mean that you fucks immediately get worse at it to prove me wrong.” She raised a hand, pointing first at Fjord. “One. We’re not playing Drunken Sailors. Two,” the finger swung round to point at Caleb, accusation flooding in its wake, “we’re not using your shitty romance novels as a template, and three,” she glared between Jester and Yasha, both of whom were giggling silently by now, “actual physical corpses are not romantic. Ever. No matter why. They can be thoughtful gifts but that’s it.” 

Eyebrows rose around the pool, but it was Caduceus who asked. 

“They can be thoughtful gifts?” 

Beau nodded firmly, narrowing her eyes at the firbolg. 

“And that brings us to four: I dunno if any of us wanna know what you’re gonna add to this fuckin’ list. You don’t gotta be weirder just because I am.” 

“I think all of us can think of someone whose corpse we’d appreciate as a gift,” Fjord said slowly, glancing over at Beau and doing his best not to grin, “but we’re a little surprised you’re drawing the line.” 

Caleb sank a little deeper into the water. Both clerics looked mildly confused. 

“I mean...” Jester began slowly, looking around the room, “I’m not sure there’s anyone that I really want dead?” 

“How about that guy who was bothering your mother?” Caduceus asked and Jester shrugged. 

“We didn’t kill him though. I mean, I totally would have! But we didn’t have to. And I’m not against killing people for you guys as gifts if you want them. I just think pastries might be a bit better?” 

Caleb raised his head just enough to talk without swallowing spa water. 

“More romantic,” he agreed hoarsely, sinking down once more. Jester perked up at once anyway, nodding and clapping her hands together. 

“Okay! So we’ve agreed dead bodies don’t count as romance, but we want to know what does!” 

“And that pastries are eligible,” Caduceus added, a slow and thoughtful smile on his face. “I think that gives me a few ideas to work with.” 

“Food is a good love language,” Yasha agreed quietly, her smile mostly back under control. It drew the others’ attention to her for a moment, and then Fjord grinned. 

“Does this mean Caduceus’s been courting all of us ever since he joined, then?” 

Attention shifted to the large, looming form of the firbolg, who seemed to be considering it just as much as any of them. 

“I suppose it does,” he decided after a while, a pleased smile curling across his lips like he’d just solved a puzzle. He seemed perfectly happy with this conclusion; like it had been his goal all along and he just hadn’t noticed. 

Jester, equally inexperienced with the nuances of life, beamed over at him and nodded. 

“And it’s worked really well too, right!” 

Caduceus nodded happily, raising a dripping hand to gesture around the room. 

“We all seem happy staying together.” 

With an effort, Beau managed to close her mouth and nodded slowly, leaning back against the wall. 

“Can’t argue with that,” she agreed with a wry chuckle, “I can’t imagine life without you assholes anymore.” 

The moment stretched, all eyes turning to her again. The very faintest flush came to brown cheeks. 

“Shut up.” 

Giggling, Jester draped herself back across Beau’s lap, pressing a kiss to one heated cheek. 

“I love you too, Beau!” Her gaze drifted around the tub, a wide, exuberant smile on her face. “I love all of you!” 

The rest of the Nein mostly mumbled along the same lines. All but Caleb, who submerged completely under the water to the surprise of pretty much no one. Only Caduceus returned the sentiment in a loud, clear voice. 

“I love you guys too. We should say that more often.” 

His own cheeks just tinging brown, Fjord stared at the ceiling. It was so much easier than looking at the others; he still wasn’t used to that much open emotional intimacy. Somehow it was all a lot easier to handle post orgasm. 

There was something just a little... raw in hearing the words so plainly. No hormones to blame them on. Nothing to soften their meaning. 

Fjord was good at intimacy, and little touches, gestures, and sweet words. Simple, straightforward talking about feelings? 

That was a lot easier to coax out of someone else. 

But... it was also kinda nice. 

“I guess we could,” he muttered, almost more to himself than the others. 

“And not in bed,” Jester cut in with just a hint of pointed look in his direction. “Just all the time.” 

“But also after sex,” Beau added quickly, her own arms slipping around Jester’s waist when it seemed she was here to stay. 

She may have had some similar issues to Fjord’s when it came to just... telling people she cared. Though for Beau, sex didn’t exactly make the words come easier. Connecting sex to affection was a learning experience. 

Kinda like almost everything else with the Mighty Nein. 

The thought brought a smile to her lips and she pressed a kiss to Jester’s cheek. 

“‘M not gonna be any good at it yet,” she said bluntly, half to the tiefling but also to the group at large, “but I guess I don’t mind learning. Trying new things.” 

A large, heavy arm slipped around her shoulders and she leaned back into Yasha’s reassuring bulk. 

“Don’t say it if you’re not sure,” the barbarian told her softly, her gentle, quiet voice filling more space than she meant to. “No pressure.” 

On her other side, Jester nodded happily, snuggling into the both of them. Somewhere under the water, her tail sought out Caleb to curl around his wrist. 

“Yeah, don’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. But I’m gonna try and tell you all more.” She beamed around the group, contentment almost visibly radiating off her. “You’re my most favourite people ever. And Nott, of course!” 

Relieved to feel the mood lightening, Fjord grimaced and raised a hand, wiggling it from side to side. 

Fighting giggles, Jester disentangled an arm from Beau to splash at him. 

“Stop that!” 

A pinch to his thigh drew the half orc’s gaze down and he looked into Caleb’s eyes, the top of the wizard’s head just barely poking out of the water to the nose. His reprimanding glare was a lot more effective than Jester’s since the bath covered his own smile. 

Groaning dramatically, Fjord leaned back and stretched his arms along the walls of the bath. If that brought one around Caduceus and the other around Caleb (should the wizard surface), well. All the better. 

“Okay, okay. I love her too.” The words came more easily already, whether from repetition or the hint of a joke. It felt... good. A slight smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. 

Yeah, he could bear saying it a little more. 

**Author's Note:**

> HK: I gots another cuddle puddle I’ve had planned just as long that I wasn’t allowed to start til now! But... yeah, what ends up coming out is kinda random right now? I’m drowning in new ideas! ><


End file.
